Bertel Thorvaldsen
Rom
Christian 8.
København
Ingen udskrift, da der er tale om et udkast.
Thorvaldsen lærte først Koop at kende i 1821, da maleren flyttede til Rom. Eftersom det fremgår af brevet, at Thorvaldsen har kendt Koop gennem seks år, må der altså være tale om ca. 1827. Maleriet af Koop, der omtales i brevet ankom imidlertid først til København før 4.12.1827, jf. Johan Gunder Adlers brev af denne dato, og før maleriet blev bedømt, og Thorvaldsen fik besked om udfaldet, må året være skiftet til 1828.
Thorvaldsen regrets that the Danish painter Andreas Ludvig Koop has not been admitted as a member of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen, and he is sure that with the continued protection and support of Christian (8.) Frederik, Koop will soon develop into a deserving teacher at the Academy.
Da jeg i en Tid af 6 Aar har havt den bedste LeilighedI til at lære at kjende Hr Historiemaler Koop, bør jeg, uden at være opfordret af ham, men af Iver for den gode Sag, allerunderdanigst bevidne for Deres Majestæt, at kan DaII jeg med den største Glæde bestandig har seet hans store Fremskridt, og at hans sidst hjemsendte ArbeideIII i alle Henseender ved Composition, Colorit, Udtryk, Aand og Følelse ganske har erhvervet ham min fuldkomne Agtelse; og jeg anseer det for min Pligt, da det høje AcademieIV ikke har antaget dette Arbeide som aggreeretV, allerunderdanigst at gjøre Deres Majestæt opmærksom paa, at Deres vedvarende Naade for denne duelige Konstner snart vil gjøre ham særdeles skikket til at indtræde som værdig LærerVI ved Deres Majestæts AcademiesVII Modelskole.
Rom d:
As during a period of 6 years I have had the best opportunity to get to know historical painter Mr Koop, I should without being asked by him but from eagerness for the good cause most humbly testify to your Majesty that As with the greatest pleasure I constantly have seen his great progress, and that his latest work sent home in all respects by composition, colour, expression, spirit, and feeling completely has gained for him my entire esteem, and as the high Academy of Fine Arts has not accepted this work as admitted, I consider it my duty most humbly to draw your Majesty’s attention to the fact that your continued grace to this able artist will soon make him most qualified to enter as a worthy teacher at your Majesty’s Academy’s life class.
Rome,
[Translated by Karen Husum]
The deletion has been made with the same pen as Thorvaldsen’s corrections and is therefore likely to have been made by him, too. The obsequious tone of the amanuensis in the draft has clearly not pleased Thorvaldsen.
Ludvig Bødtcher
Last updated 27.02.2017
Koop arrived in Rome in 1821 and got to know Thorvaldsen. Koop remained in Rome until his death.
The deletion and the corrections have been made by Thorvaldsen, as can be seen in the original.
I.e. Koop’s painting Moses Striking Water from the Rock from 1826, which Koop sent to Denmark in a failed attempt to have it accepted as a membership piece at the Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. Today the work is in the National Gallery of Denmark, inv.nr. KMS122.
See the poet Carsten Hauch’s letter to Thorvaldsen dated 12.4.1828, in which the evaluation of Koop’s painting is mentioned, and in which Hauch writes that he has requested Jonas Collin to obtain a declaration from Thorvaldsen regarding Koop’s merits. It might well be this warm recommendation of Koop that was the result of this request.
I.e. the Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen i København.
The painting was not considered good enough for Koop to be accepted by the Fellows of the Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen. In spite of numerous recommendations, the painter was never admitted to the Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. Usually, an artist could be admitted by sending in a membership piece, i.e. a finished work on a set subject, which was then accepted or rejected by the fellows of the Academy. The criticism of the organization and the procedures for admittance of the Academy increased during the first half of the 1800s, culminating in 1846, when neither Christen Købke nor Constantin Hansen was admitted. As a consequence, the charter of the Academy was changed in 1857, cf. Anneli Fuchs and Emma Salling (eds.): Kunstakademiet 1754-2004, vol. I, Copenhagen 2004, p. 97-104.
In order to teach at the Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen, one usually had to have been admitted as a fellow and appointed professor at the Academy, cf. the previous note on admittance.
From 1808, Prince Christian (8.) Frederik was president of the Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen and thus the supreme authority of the institution.